The final goodbye
by Storm Arashi
Summary: Yuki Tachibana wasn't the only Tachibana child who was tormented by Oshima's desire for Tomiko's return. Tomoe was the only one who survived Oshima's attack. Years later Masako Hara claims that the spirit of Yuki wishes to have a final conversation.


There had been a reason why Tomoe's father pressured her for marriage. It wasn't just because of the Tachibana family line.

It had been because Tomoe was the only child in her family to live past ten. Before they moved back to the family compound, Tomoe, her mother and father lived in a large country home.

With Yuki Tachibana the youngest.

Living in that house was the hardest thing Tomoe ever went through. Children the same age as she and Yuki would appear before them.

(Flashback.)

_Tomoe's favorite doll had began talking to the girls. "Your father doesn't love you." _

"_What about mommy?" Yuki asked her long dark hair falling infront of her face as she leaned forward. Tomoe grabbed onto her sister holding her tightly. "Gack! Big sister your hurting me." Tomoe loosened her grip but Yuki leaned forward again. Or tried to. The eight year old tightened her grip on her older sister._

"_Your mommy hates you too. She wants to kill you." Tomoe knew this voice wasn't the voice of her doll. It sounded nothing like the childish voicebox in the plush toy._

_Two weeks later Yuki screamed and clawed at her neck as dark marks appeared._

_Tomoe was whisked from her sister's room, Yuki's screams ringing in her ears._

"_YUKI!" She screamed trying to fight Hanzou. "NO! SHE'S MY BABY SISTER! DON'T KILL HER!" A woman in a kimono was standing over the child strangling her trying to force her to her feet. "YUKI!"  
_

"_Tomiko..."_

Yuki Tachibana died ten minutes later. The marks were only visible to Tomoe. Doctors believed she died of an illness.

Tomoe knew they were wrong.

After the Rosalia outbreak was over Tomoe visited Japan for a medical conference.

That's when Masako Hara appraoched her. "Your Tomoe Tachibana...Aren't you?" She asked looking at Tomoe in the eyes.

How did this teenager get into a medical conference?

"Who are you? How did you get in here?" She hadn't known who Masako was then.

"Masako Hara...I cleansed your childhood home of your sister's murderer."

All those memories buried in the back of her mind resurfaced. Yuki's screams of fear and agony. The moan of a name that didn't belong to anyone. The woman in the kimono strangling the eight year old in bed.

Hanzou pulling her away as her sister reached for her.

Tomoe grabbed onto the teen and pulled her away out of sight. "How did you know of that?" 

"Oshima lost her child Tomiko and feighed being your mother...You are the older sister of Yuki Tachibana are you not?" Masako argued bringing Tomoe back to the subject.

"Yes I am...Oshima is the woman I saw trying to force Yuki to her feet by strangling her?"

Masako nodded. "'Was' is the correct term. Shibuya Psychic research has investigated the home when a young girl Ayami was being targeted by the spirits of all the children. Yuki had been the ringleader of these lost children." She explained. Tomoe covered her mouth in shock. Little Yuki always so full of empathy for others...Helped someone keep the spirits of children like her trapped?

"I don't believe you."

"She refused to pass on with the other children. She left the house but followed me for weeks until I found you finally. She wants to say something to you." Masako's eyes darkened as her head dropped.

Tomoe grabbed her shoulders convinced Masako was mentally ill, about to chew her out.

"Onee-chan..." The child's voice coming out of Masako's mouth was not her. Tomoe's eyes widened as she stepped back. Masako's eye colorees had changed to the silvery grey her eyes were in life. "She would have murdered you too if Hanzou hadn't stepped in. I wanted to leave with you but she was choking me and I couldn't move. It felt like my body was slowing down. Then the next thing I knew I was standing infront of you guys but my body was behind me...I didn't know I had died. Oshima claimed to be mommy but I didn't trust her and tried to use my martial arts to defend myself...But she overpowered me again. She wanted me to kill you too...She found I wasn't her child and convinced herself that you were Tomiko..."

Tomoe remembered every second of that awful night. She couldn't believe that Yuki was almost forced to kill her sister as well. "Oh Yuki..."

"Until now I've had been tied to this place. Mommy is waiting for me I know it. I love you Onee-chan. I'm sorry for scaring you." Yuki said to her embracing the woman. Feeling shocked but knew that it had to be Yuki. No one outside of the clan knew about the shinobi arts of the Tachibana dynesty. Their own martial art training had been for them to take over the clan one day. Together.

"Oh Yuki...Imouto. Please don't apologize. You were being harmed...I'm sorry for not protecting you like I should have."

"I didn't listen Onee-chan...Forgive me?" Masako had pulled away then fell to the floor.

The warm glow surprised Tomoe but she didn't feel as if she had to run or fight. She felt safe.

Yuki appeared before her. The night gown she died in was replaced with the kimono she was buried in. Her long dark hair now flowed behind her as if wind was blowing. "I forgive you Yuki...Tell mama I love her and you. You followed the path of honor coming back to say goodbye." Tomoe reached out and touched Yuki's skin. It surprised her that she could touch the spirit.

Yuki giggled and grabbed her sister's hand kissing it. "I'm glad you think so. I'll tell mama exactly what you told me to say. I'll always watch over you and Daddy with her."

The spirit began to fade away. "Yuki!" Tomoe cried out.

"Goodbye..."

Once again Tomoe slumped to the ground and cried for her sister. "Oh Yuki..."

Masako moaned and forced herself up. "She's finally gone I take it?" She asked as if Yuki was nothing but a dog. Helping her up Tomoe smiled at her.

Then promptly thanked her before kicking her out of the conference. "You gave me another chance to say goodbye. But you had no right to enter."

Masako blinked as Tomoe disappeared. "First time I've been kicked out..."

When Tomoe made it back Maria and Naomi took her aside. "So...You saw your first ghost." Maria then clapped. Naomi lowered her head shaking it.

"No...Merely my second...Shall we head back?"

"I'm sorry for your sister's death."

Tomoe shook her head. "It's fine...Yuki's with our mother now. Our real mother. She's no longer in pain from being forced to stay here."

But Maria hugged her for one of the few times showing her soft side. Tomoe felt some tears but held back.

Yuki herself said it was against the path of honor to cry infront of friends.

I had watched Ghost Hunt recently and the name Yuki Tachibana came up quite a bit as one of the ghosts in the house. It's an anime so I thought it was eerie that Tomoe's last name is Tachibana.

Then this idea popped into my mind. What if Tomoe lived in that house as a child and Yuki was her sister?

So I own nothing! I don't own anyone in this story!


End file.
